Etalon Sound Dream DAC review
May 31, 2019 Comments Off on Etalon Sound Dream DAC review
“Classic R2R array has a flaw associated with the problem of signal conversion while virtual zero crossings. At this moment all logical circuits are switched simultaneously and even tiny non-synchronism causes an overshoot of stray impulses (the so-called glitches).
In Super R2R virtual zero crossing poses no problem because R2R arrays have balanced discrete sign-magnitude hybrid ladder topology. Positive and negative half-waves of the signal are processed independently, each by a separate array and are mixed only at the output. As a result, there’s no virtual zero crossing at all and no corresponding problems!”
Audioengine A2+ Wireless Powered Speakers $269 Review
May 30, 2019 Comments Off on Audioengine A2+ Wireless Powered Speakers $269 Review
“I’m totally sold on the A2+. At this ridiculously low price point, there’s absolutely no reason why they shouldn’t be sitting at every music lover’s desktop, or in a whole lotta dorm rooms across the country. They acquitted themselves so very nicely in a relatively large room—it only reasons to think that they’d really sing and provide a seriously satisfying listening experience in a much more typically sized environment. And even though they weren’t ideally placed in the room, they filled the room with remarkably good sound that defied localization—exactly what you’d expect from any pair of speakers with audiophile pretensions. For $269, you generally expect to get junk, not something that truly offers a generous taste of the audiophile experience. Very highly recommended!”
McIntosh XR50 speakers $4,000 Review
May 29, 2019 Comments Off on McIntosh XR50 speakers $4,000 Review
“Right from the first track, the XR50 showed why it often pays to use equipment from the same manufacturer. The result was balanced, very natural and quintessentially McIntosh. The McIntosh combination was one made in heaven or more correctly, in the McIntosh factory! The sound was warm and uncannily lifelike, displaying many characteristics that revealed the human factor in the music-making process. Intake breaths, which more often than not are distractions, became an integral part of the music.
In spite of the diminutive size relative to my reference speakers, the bass output was bigger and deeper and more akin to what I know of in live performances. For example, double bass bowing and plucking on Harry Allen’s New York State of Mind had tremendous presence and furniture-vibrating qualities. I must add, this was reproduced in a most natural manner.”
Mr. Speakers Ether 2 – $2,000 Review
May 28, 2019 Comments Off on Mr. Speakers Ether 2 – $2,000 Review
“To me, this is one kick-butt headphone. The frequency response is just about spot on perfect. Compared to the Aeon, the upper midrange is a bit cleaner and less shouty, the mids a bit more full, especially in the lower midrange, with a bit more bass presence and dynamics than the Aeon and a super smooth treble response that is neither bright nor warm, but exceptionally balanced. The mids are silky without being too forward or too warm. Some measurements and listening revealed to me a response which is much like a smoother, less aggressive version of the Harman Curve. This is just about right for my tastes, and everything the headphone does has an effortlessly resolving and transparent feel to it. I was most surprised by the sense of imaging however. This is one of the only headphones that feels like it has a real sense of soundstage and clarity to me without being harsh. The image it throws is distinctly in the forward-ish location in relationship to my eyeballs, and remarkably tangible. I could see some folks feeling the treble is ever so slightly dry, though I found this to be somewhat amp dependent and in general I didn’t hear the treble as being bright or overly damped or peaky. Certainly this headphone has a more natural sound to it than some of Mr. Speakers earlier headphones, such as the first generation of Ether headps which were a bit analytical for my tastes.
Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum III Int. Amp World Premiere Review
May 28, 2019 Comments Off on Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum III Int. Amp World Premiere Review
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I just received a test CD with my British Hi-Fi+ magazine subscription. The CD reads, ISOTEK: The Ultimate System set-up Disc. Even though it is primarily a system set up recording it does have music sound tracks. Reasoning that the Cronus amplifier is now the center of my music system listening to it could be very informative. Part of the test recording contains a series of sound and imaging tracks both left and right, including depth and even a 360 degree sound sweep, all perfectly done. Happy to announce that my music evaluation machine with the Cronus in the system is all neat and tidy and properly set up. Unfortunately, the music tracks on this test CD are just mediocre and do not really test the ability of the Cronus Magnum III. However, I do have a CD that will reveal this amplifiers detailing ability.
Chances are a committed audiophile would own a copy of Nils Lofgren’s SACD Acoustic Live, and so let’s spin it up. Immediately there is a dimensional expansion of the sound scape. The scale of stereo imaging within the performance space, including those in front of the stage, are clear to hear. There are great aural hints of 3D space. Space is what you should expect, and that’s what would be a wonderful characteristic of this vacuum tube powered soundscape. Razor edged transient attack is what you might hear with a solid-state setup, yet Rogue Audio’s Cronus Magnum III integrated tube amplifier with phono stage reveals something far more satisfying. The sound is full of natural resonant harmonic overtones both odd and even. More than that, those overtones decay into silence much more gradually. My favorite Harry Pearson phrase is “Continuousness”, and here it fits nicely.”
ABYSS DIANA PHI REVIEW
May 27, 2019 Comments Off on ABYSS DIANA PHI REVIEW
“We have seen many good headphones in the recent months and years, but it seems that the higher end segment is concentrating on planar magnetic drivers. The market is filled with cans from established orthodynamic headphone manufacturers like HiFiMAN, Audeze and Abyss themselves, but we have seen new introductions like the Empyrean by Meze, the MrSpeakers Ether headphones and the newly launched Rosson Audio Design RAD-0 from Alex Rosson (ex-CEO of Audeze).
I can only compare the Diana Phi with what I have in my inventory though, as I won’t make any judgements based on short term listenings or sessions from the past. Those aren’t credible in my books and I won’t add comparisons to something I haven’t heard at home. Let’s take a look how the Diana Phi compares to my other headphones.”
Pass Labs INT-60 Amplifier $9,000 Review
May 26, 2019 Comments Off on Pass Labs INT-60 Amplifier $9,000 Review
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A high level of tonal and timbral accuracy also makes the INT-60 tough to ignore. Pianos, violins, and other acoustic instruments sound incredibly right, and with a pair of speakers in the 87-90db/1-watt sensitivity range, you will have to push the INT-60 very hard to get it to clip.
Rounding out the picture, the INT-60 paints a very engaging, three-dimensional musical landscape, with rock-solid pace. Listening to the Stones’ “Low Down” (from Bridges to Babylon), the INT-60 keeps Charlie Watts drumming solidly anchored through the melody, while Keith Richards and Ronnie Wood sneak up behind Jagger’s lead vocals, going “woo, woo” during the chorus, as if they were up on stage together. Pure acoustic performances delight, and the level that this amplifier unfolds densely packed music is truly world class.”
GoldenEar Technology Triton One.R Loudspeakers $5999 Review
May 26, 2019 Comments Off on GoldenEar Technology Triton One.R Loudspeakers $5999 Review
“Lately, to gauge audio components’ reproduction of women’s voices, I’ve been listening to Carpenters albums. Richard Carpenter’s backing vocals irritate me to no end, but Karen Carpenter’s pure-sounding contralto mesmerizes me, and it’s her voice that’s always front and center in the mix. One of their best albums for evaluating gear is With the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (24/48 FLAC unfolded to 24/96 MQA, A&M/Tidal), a new album comprising remasterings of already-recorded Carpenters hits with overdubbed accompaniment by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Richard Carpenter, who oversaw all production. Richard has the reputation of being a perfectionist, and from what I heard he got it right — this is one smooth, clean-sounding recording.
In “For All We Know,” the GoldenEars rendered Karen’s voice so clearly that I was spellbound — she hovered unwaveringly in space between the speakers, sounding clean, clean, clean. Had I not been going back and forth between the One.Rs and the two-way, stand-mounted Focal Kanta No1s ($5999/pair), also in for review, I’d have had trouble dredging up a single complaint about the One.Rs in that area. But the Kantos reproduced the sound of Karen Carpenter’s voice just a little bit more purely and a touch more openly than did the One.Rs. Don’t read that as a knock against the Triton One.Rs — they were surprisingly close to the Kantos even in this regard, and in the bass they cleaned the little Kantos’ clocks, as you’d expect a couple big floorstanders to do against a pair of minimonitors.”
MARK LEVINSON NO 585.5 INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER $12,000REVIEW
May 25, 2019 Comments Off on MARK LEVINSON NO 585.5 INTEGRATED AMPLIFIER $12,000REVIEW
“As mentioned above, the No 585.5 includes Mark Levinson’s trademarked Clari-Fi® circuitry that is used to reconstruct much of what is lost when audio files are compressed. I used this often and it has an intensity control that you can adjust. After trying out the different intensity settings, I wound up keeping it at the factory default.
As mentioned previously, the No 585.5 includes a very flexible phono stage. It’s great that it is all controlled via the front display. There is no need to open up the case and toggle dip switches. Nice. Besides all the available settings discussed above, the unit also had a balance offset for the phono stage. Typically one would ensure good channel balance by properly adjusting and calibrating their tonearm/cartridge but in some cases, certain phono rigs have a characteristic channel imbalance. This is where you can make a default setting that varies by up to +/- 3 dB in 0.1 dB steps.”
SME Synergy All-In-One Turntable Review
May 25, 2019 Comments Off on SME Synergy All-In-One Turntable Review
“That’s probably down to its precision yoke housing with 10mm ABEC 3 ball-bearing races. The yoke is mounted to the 23mm-diameter heat-treated, ground and honed steel pillar, with a pair of 17mm ABEC 7 ball bearing races widely spaced to resist tilt.
SME’s partnering cartridge of choice is the highly regarded MC Ortofon Windfeld Ti [HFN Jan ’18]. It too is beautifully engineered using the company’s Selective Laser Melting technology where fine particles of titanium are welded together to create a body core optimised for rigidity and low weight. It is fitted with gold-plated 6N oxygen-free copper coils, coupled to a cantilever tipped by Ortofon’s Replicant 100 diamond. Its low-ish 0.2mV output is certainly suited to the integral Nagra phono stage.
Most will enlist the services of their friendly local SME dealer to set up the Synergy, but if that’s not possible then it’s actually fairly straightforward to get going.
Audiophilepure 
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